Brain processing of word units

A study involving 20 participants finds that when graphemes, written symbols for speech sounds, are manipulated to help or impair their identification, such as c-ha-ir instead of ch-ai-r, activity is modulated in a particular visual region of the brain; the results suggest that this brain region analyzes written words for translation into sounds, rather than for access to meaning–a dissociation that may explain variations in reading acquisition and proficiency, according to the authors.

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Article #19-04184: “A mesial-to-lateral dissociation for orthographic processing in the visual cortex,” by Florence Bouhali, Zoé Bézagu, Stanislas Dehaene, and Laurent Cohen.

MEDIA CONTACT: Florence Bouhali, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle Épinière, Paris, FRANCE; e-mail:

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